10-Jul-2019
Four national platforms of Adivasi and Forest dwellers’ organisations have written strong letters to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government on the issues of Supreme Court eviction order, amendments to the Indian Forest Act and large scale corruption in the name of afforestation and “development of mining-affected areas”. The platforms include Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya…
10-Jul-2019
Mahua, which has found mention in folk poetry, songs and stories is rightly called the “gift of Gods.” Flowering in summer, especially during March and April, the flowers provide respite to the lands and peoples stricken by drought and summers. These deciduous trees flower even as all other trees lie bare. It’s a revered tree…
09-Jul-2019
A national consultation on forest and land rights has declared protest actions across India on July 22, tentatively the date for hearing in the case of the recent Supreme Court order on eviction of forest dwelling communities. Bhumi Adhikar Andolan, a platform working for the land rights of communities called for a two day…
14-Jun-2019
This is the story of Human rights defender Sokalo Gond who fights for the rights of her people, in Sonbhadra, a forested region of UP. She is one of the most important forces in the struggle for the implementation of forest rights act 2006 in Sonbhadra. Over the years, Sokalo has been working relentlessly with…
18-May-2019
In an exclusive conversation with CJP Secretary Teesta Setalvad, Roma Malik highlights the illegality of the February 2019 Supreme Court order (later stayed), the challenges in the implementation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, the farce of pitting arguments of survival of forest dwellers versus wildlife conservancy and many more issues. The first part of…
15-Mar-2019
Even though there exist laws to protect forest dwellers in the country, residents, especially women, continue to face severe forms of harassment at the hands of officials, said women activists from Sonbhadra District of Uttar Pradesh during an event in Mumbai. They recounted stories of resistance and struggles in their attempts to secure land during…
01-Dec-2018
For the longest time, the lobby of contractors, bureaucrats, forest department officials and other traders have kept local forest dwellers away from their own work of labour, namely Minor Forest Produce or MFPs, giving them only wages for the work they would do to collect and process forest produce. The profit would inevitably be scooped…
20-Nov-2018
In the run up to the Lok Sabha polls, Uttar Pradesh (UP) Chief Minister Adityanath has reportedly “stepped up efforts to expand his influence in the most backward communities” living in the forest protected regions of the Eastern UP. This, the CM plans to do by granting revenue status to villages which will entitle them…
01-Nov-2018
Sokalo Gond an Adivasi human rights defender & executive committee member of AIUFWP was illegally incarcerated since June 2018. Despite being granted bail on October 4, technical & procedural issues kept Sokalo behind bars till today. After 5 long months in jail she walks free today. Related: A Beautiful Show of Solidarity: Activists group reaches…
31-Oct-2018
ऑल इंडिया यूनियन ऑफ फ़ॉरेस्ट वर्किंग पीपल (AIUFWP) की सदस्य रोमा ने 20 जून 2018 को सीजेपी की सचिव तीस्ता सेतलवाड़ के साथ संयुक्त रूप से एक शिकायत दर्ज कराई थी. इस शिकायत के सम्बन्ध में 20 सितंबर 2018 को राष्ट्रीय मानवाधिकार आयोग (NHRC) से एक जवाब प्राप्त हुआ. ये शिकायत, उत्तर प्रदेश (यूपी) के सोनभद्र के लिलासी गांव में पुलिस द्वारा बरती…